Caution necessary on early ice

Early ice typically provides some hot fishing action and is favorite time to be on the ice for area anglers, but it doesn’t come with out risk.

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By MARK SPENCLEYmark@cheboygantribune.com

Cheboygan Daily Tribune - Cheboygan, MI

By MARK SPENCLEYmark@cheboygantribune.com

Posted Jan. 9, 2013 at 12:01 AM

By MARK SPENCLEYmark@cheboygantribune.com

Posted Jan. 9, 2013 at 12:01 AM

CHEBOYGAN

Early ice typically provides some hot fishing action and is favorite time to be on the ice for area anglers, but it doesn’t come with out risk.

“Ice conditions vary so much from lake to lake, even on a single lake, especially the big ones,” said Sgt. Greg Drogowski, Department of Natural Resources officer who handles law enforcement in Cheboygan and Presque Isle counties. “Guys are always in a rush to get out there, especially with vehicles. Springs and currents really have an affect on ice thickness. People go through every year and sometimes its fatal. Those are tragedies.”

Ice fishing and snowmobiling account for the vast majority of the ice breakthroughs each winter. Anglers anxious to get to a favorite fishing hole and snowmobiles willing to try a shortcut across a lake too often find themselves on dangerous ice and in a potentially deadly situation.

“We don’t put out anything on how many inches of ice is enough,” Drogowski added. “When it comes to ice, you always have to be overly cautious, even when there seems like there’s plenty of ice.”

Caution on the ice is especially important early in the season.

“Even if you know where the springs are, just wait until there’s plenty of ice for it to be safe,” Drogowski added. “Those fish are still going to be there in a week or however long it takes.”

Despite words of caution, many anglers and snowmobilers will test their luck in the coming weeks. Even if the initial accident is escaped without injury, the danger doesn’t end until the vehicle is removed from the ice.

In many instances, people gather friends to help extract their vehicle and escape removal costs. Add several people, thin ice, and a large hole and you get an equation for disaster.

“People usually call us when something like this happens,” said Drogowski. “It’s required that they contact a law enforcement agency. What you don’t want is a bunch of people out trying to get it out. On unsafe ice, that’s just asking for trouble.”

One of the reasons people try to remove their vehicle without reporting it is the common belief that the DNR will levy a large fine to the vehicle owner.

“Something that gets talked about a lot, but isn’t true is the big fine for going through the ice,” said Drogowski. “A lot of people think there is this huge fine for their vehicle going through the ice. That’s not true. If they leave it in there, they will be prosecuted, but there’s not a daily fine or anything.”

Page 2 of 2 - Though the DNR won’t charge for a vehicle breaking through the ice, the ordeal can be very expensive.

In many instances, auto insurance does not cover the damage and the price of having a towing service retrieve a vehicle can be costly.

“It can be really expensive I know that,” Drogowski said. “It depends on a lot of things. The depth of the water is the biggest.”

In deep water, a dive team has to be sent down to assess the situation and prepare the vehicle to be lifted.

Ice removal specialists at Conway Towing said the price varies greatly from one retrieval to the next, making it too difficult to estimate an average price.

As the temperatures warm this weekend, the odds of the early ice giving out under an ATV or snowmobile will gradually increase.

“People just need to be careful,” Drogowski said. “If its not safe don’t risk it.”